No plastic cups in canteens as cos adopt go green mantra

Chennai: 140 tonnes — that’s the amount of plastic waste Swedish carmaker Volvo will save with a switch to pulp, paper and wood cups, crockery and cutlery across its offices worldwide. The move will remove 500 plastic items per employee per year, the company estimates. The automobile major pledged last week to remove single-use plastics from all its offices worldwide by the end of 2019 as part of its effort to support the UN Environment Clean Seas campaign.

Plastic bag bans and campaigns to recycle have usually had mixed success, but now a number of corporates are trying to cut plastic use in their offices in a bid to do their bit for the environment, switch to sustainable ways of doing business, and in the process change the way employees and their families think of plastic use. Single use plastics are those that are used only once before they are thrown away or recycled such as straws, coffee stirrers, soda and water bottles and most food packaging.

At IT major Cognizant, a ‘Bring Your Own Mug’ campaign is driving plastic out of offices. “Bring Your Own Mug is a modest beginning to our ambitious goals for 2020, which include zero waste to landfill, getting 20% of our energy from green sources, attaining zero waste effluent discharge, and reducing fresh water consumption to 20 litres a day per associate,” said Deepak Prabhu Matti, global head, Cognizant Outreach.

In some cases, it’s a personal cause that has pushed the company to adopt sustainable practices. S Venkatesh, president, HR at RPG Group, has not used plastic bags for several years, and has been encouraging colleagues to give them up too. Three months ago, the group replaced plastic spoons and plates with glass, porcelain and steel. All employees were given stainless steel flasks. “The moment people come into office, wastage is considered okay. We want to change this habit. It takes some effort with cleaning but it’s worth it,” he said. This has been done at the Mumbai headquarters that has 400 employees and will soon be rolled out across the country.

In March this year, the Maharashtra government issued a notification banning various single use plastic items. This move is likely to push the drive towards elimination of plastic however, several corporates have been leaders of sorts and implemented bans much ahead of the notification. Following Maharashtra’s lead, the Tamil Nadu government on June 6th announced that the state would be plastic free from Jan 2019.

At Volvo, by the end of 2018, single-use plastics will be removed from car launches, and offices and restaurants in facilities in China, Belgium, US, Sweden and Malaysia. “Plastic pollution is one of the great environmental challenges of our time,” said Stuart Templar, director for sustainability at Volvo Cars.

“We must play our part in helping tackle this global problem.”At Capgemini, the move towards plastic-free campuses began in 2016. Cafeteria vendors were asked to do away with one-time use plastic. Screensavers were deployed pan India to educate employees.

“The government is taking steps to address the plastic problem, and corporates need to follow sustainable practices too. A plastic ban is a step towards eliminating non-biodegradable waste,” said Dayakar Reddy, executive vice-president and head-corporate real estate services, India and APAC, Capgemini.